Court invader straps herself to net at French Open and says ‘1028 days left’

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A female court invader held up play at the French Open for several minutes after tying herself to the net in what appeared a form of protest.

The men's semi final between Casper Ruud and Marin Cilic was evenly poised at one-set all, with Ruud leading 4-1 in the third, when the protestor ran onto the playing surface and attached herself to the net. She was wearing a white t-shirt with a message written on the back in black pen.

Both players waited patiently for the situation to be resolved, before eventually being sent back to the changing room area by the umpire. They emerged several minutes later once the female had been removed from the Court Philippe-Chatrier.

The organisation Derniere Renovation, who run a campaign on energy renovation, have since claimed responsibility for the protest. In a post on Twitter, the group said a 22-year-old protestor called Alizee had attempted "to draw attention to the climate emergency."

During the interruption Amelia Mauresmo, the tournament director, came down to courtside to watch the proceedings. Earlier in the day, Mauresmo had watched the first semi final between Rafael Nadal and Alexander Zverev be marred by the German player having to leave court in a wheelchair when trailing 7-6 6-6.

BBC 5 live commentator Greg Rusedski was perturbed by what transpired, saying: "It is quite concerning, the tournament director Amelie Mauresmo is out there, it's not what you want to see at a tennis match."

When play resumed, it was Norwegian Ruud who took the set 6-2, and then won the fourth by the same scoreline to make a frist Grand Slam final. He'll meet 'King of Clay' Nadal, a 13-time tournament champion, on Sunday.

The scene in Paris mirrored that of the Premier League match between Everton and Newcastle United on March 17, where play was held up when a protestor tied himself to the goal post. It later emerged the man was representing the views of a group called Just Stop Oil, and was protesting about new oil fields in the North Sea.

This isn't the first time that Roland Garros has encountered problems with protestors though. Back in 2013, during the French Open final between Nadal and Novak Djokovic, a masked protester leapt onto the court brandishing a flare, forcing a quick response from security personnel.

• Tennis

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